More vintage

Upon further reflection of my recent post on vintage cereal boxes I have come up with an idea that cereal companies may want to seriously consider.

What about vintage cereals, not just vintage boxes?

That's right, cereal companies could tap into our fascination with nostalgia by re-introducing cereals from the past in vintage packaging. They wouldn't have to be permanent additions, but limited editions. No more than one or two at a time would be needed by each company, but it would be a great way to capture sales in a highly competitive marketplace. I also suspect they could charge a little more and still sell them out.

Wouldn't it be great to taste again Kellogg's OKs or Puffa Puffa Rice? General Mills would have many excellent choices to offer, such as Sir Grapefellow, Crazy Cow, or Twinkles. What about Quaker Quake (they've already done this with Quisp!)? Or, Ralston Freakies? And, of course, Post Pink Panther Flakes!

We're tired of yet another flavor of Special K, or a new marshmallow in Lucky Charms.

How about something a little more exciting?

Technorati Tags: cereak, nostalgia, breakfastbowl

General Mills goes vintage

Things have been relatively quiet with General Mills lately. But, I've noticed that they have introduced limited editions of vintage cereal boxes, including Lucky Charms (the only one I've been able to find so far), Kix, Golden Grahams, Wheaties and Honey Nut Cheerios. This should be a fun trip down memory lane, tapping into our nostalgic cravings.

And, there is also a corresponding vintage T-Shirt offer.

Now, if only the cereal prices were vintage!

UPDATE 03/03/08: It appears that these retro boxes are only available at Target stores.

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Technorati Tags: cereal, General+Mills, nostalgia, BreakfastBowl

Vintage Post

Vintage cereal boxes are not new (General Mills made some earlier this year). Now it's Post's turn.

I recently came across three of their cereals in vintage-looking boxes: Raisin Bran, Spoon-Size Shredded Wheat, and Grape Nuts. While not as authentic looking as what I've seen from General Mills and Kellogg, they are nonetheless fun, especially with the historical information on the back panels.

Nostalgia is a great way to sell cereal, as the morning breakfast bowl is deeply embedded in our culture and on our psyches. Cereal companies need to tap into this more.

Technorati Tags: cereal, Post, nostalgia, Raisin+Bran, Shredded+Wheat, Grape+Nuts, breakfastbowl

General Mills and Target go vintage (again)

For the second year in a row, General Mills is producing a limited edition of vintage cereal boxes but available only through Target. An interesting article in Advertising Age probes this campaign and relationship and suggests that "retro designs of their youth appeal to stressed shoppers' desire for comfort".

This year's boxes include: Cheerios, Honey-Nut Cheerios, Lucky Charms, Cocoa Puffs, and Trix. Like last year there is also a vintage T-shirt offer.

General Mills has hit on an interesting idea - one that could be expanded further. It brings back "fun" to eating cereal.

Technorati Tags: cereal, nostalgia, General+Mills, breakfastbowl

Quaker goes vintage

Add a fourth cereal company trying to tap into the nostalgic sentimentality of consumers. According to several reports on cerealbits.com vintage-looking boxes of Cap'n Crunch and Crunchberries are showing up in some stores. UPDATE 8/31/10: There is also a Peanut Butter Cap'n Crunch box.

This is a great fit, because Cap'n Crunch is truly a classic from childhood!


Technorati Tags: cereal, nostalgia, Capn+Crunch, breakfastbowl

Post builds on nostalgia

General Mills is not the only company taking advantage of cereal nostalgia right now. In a store I came across a new line of Post Toasties cereals that are actually being referred to as Post "Classics". (Will there be others?) Toasties was the name of Post's version of Corn Flakes, which was discontinued in 2006. The new Toasties, however, also come in Frosted Flakes, and wheat and barley O's varieties. This is not the first attempt for Post at tapping into nostalgia.

The new Toasties boxes are not truly vintage, but they do have the feel. Nevertheless, they are getting it right by going for the emotional attachment consumers have with cereal. Hopefully they will dig into their recipe archives even more.

By the way, on the topic of vintage cereals, be sure to visit the poll on our main page to indicate which cereals from the past you'd like to see.

Technorati Tags: cereal, Post, Toasties, breakfastbowl

General Mills nostalgia

For the third year in a row General Mills is selling limited edition vintage cereals through Target. This year's varieties include Trix, Honey Nut Cheerios, Cheerios, Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Lucky Charms. This fits in well with other nostalgic marketing being done by other companies, such as Pepsi.

I continue to believe that this is a great marketing strategy, and one that should be expanded beyond just nostalgic boxes. Come on General Mills, Kellogg, and Post: Let's see some actual cereals from the past come back for a special treat. You'd sell tons of them!

(Source: Brandweek)

Technorati Tags: cereal, nostalgia, General+Mills, breakfastbowl

The Trix behind classic cereals

Big news in the cereal world today, as General Mills announced that they would be bringing back Trix with all the artificial flavors and colors you used to love, although no word yet on any change to the sugar content. It was just two years ago that General Mills announced the move to remove these artificial ingredients, as part of a longer trend of making their cereals more healthful. "Classic" Trix is not a limited time promotion, but will sit permanently next to the more tame, "natural" Trix on grocers shelves.

Obviously, the move to a greater health focus has a downside. In the effort to satisfy critics of highly sugared cereals targeted to kids, interest in these beloved breakfast brands has decreased. The newer Trix recipe is much more bland and less interesting, or "boring" as I called it in my review. Despite all the altruism, it was apparent to General Mills that people really want the bright and flavorful version embedded in most people's memories. In a time when cereal sales are sagging (evidenced by other news today that General Mills' profits have declined due to weaker cereal revenues), it was time to go back to what worked in the past.

The initial reaction by consumers has been extremely positive, although some hoped that the one-time popular fruit shapes would return as well, something that General Mills said may still happen. For cereal enthusiasts, this move today is very significant, and provides hope that the good old days of cereal fun may return. We have seen many examples before by General Mills and others of using vintage packaging to tap into nostalgia, and in some cases, successful cereals of the past have been reintroduced, such as Post's recent relaunch of Oreo O's. But, to go back to a previous, less healthy recipe, is largely unheard of. I have long held that reintroducing classic cereals could be a boon for cereal manufacturers, even if these were limited editions. Maybe today's move will inspire other reintroductions.

There is a problem, however. What if these classic recipes take off (as they certainly will), overshadowing their healthier shelf-mates? General Mills and others will have no business choice, but to keep the older formulas, and drop the less interesting newer varieties. In other words, this is the New Coke versus Classic Coke dilemma of the 1980's, but with cereal. The problem is that this puts General Mills back into the crosshairs of those who believe that highly-sugared cereal with artificial ingredients should not be sold, or at least not targeted to children.

No matter how the future unfolds, today's reintroduction of Classic Trix is a significant move in the ongoing cereal saga.

Wheaties releases retro boxes

The last few years has seen several companies, including Quaker, Post, and Kellogg, sell limited edition vintage boxes to tap into cereal nostalgia. But, no company has done this more consistently than General Mills, which currently has another annual set available at Target. This week the company announced another effort, with the release of three retro boxes of Wheaties featuring three prominent athletes of the past: Muhammad Ali, Bruce Jenner and Mary Lou Retton. These boxes are largely reproductions of past ones.

I've talked a lot here about the Wheaties brand in the recent years, and it certainly has lost much of its prominence, even despite their mediocre attempt with Wheaties FUEL. This latest marketing campaign could be a significant boost, and if followed up with a steady stream of new hero boxes could re-establish the brand in minds of consumers.

(Source: Business Wire)

All the monsters are back!

One of the most celebrated cereal franchises is General Mills' monster cereals. For decades the company has had a cult following of its monster-themed cereals, which in recent years have only made their appearance around Halloween.

Cereal fanatics will be overjoyed to learn that one of their biggest fantasies is to be re-lived. According to a photo on Serious Eats it appears that for 2013 General Mills will be releasing the entire monster family. In addition to the regulars (Count Chocula, Boo Berry, and Franken Berry) we will see the return of two lesser known monsters who made their debut approximately 40 years ago: Frute Brute (although notice the spelling change from the original "fruit") and Fruity Yummy Mummy. These latter two cereals did not last long in the market, and to this day are rare, collectible boxes. If this photo is legit, this will give several new generations an opportunity to try to them for the first time, and us old folks a fun trip down memory lane.

Good move General Mills! Nostalgic cereals are a great marketing opportunity. We want more!

(Tip from Cereal Fix)

UPDATED 8/20/13: Official statement from General Mills

UPDATED 09/10/13: Even better - Target is now selling vintage versions of these boxes!

Monster evolution

This is not new news (I highlighted it on the Facebook page last month) and in many ways I wonder whether it deserves yet another complete blog post, but the annual release of General Mills' Monster Cereals has become such a highly successful and expected campaign that it probably does require special attention. At least this year again.

Just in time for Halloween every year General Mills provides a limited release of these popular cereals that have their origins back in the 60's. These are nothing less than fun cereals that fit the season and elicit all kinds of nostalgia for those of us who grew up on these sugar-laden breakfast treats.

Last year General Mills went big time with the Monster Cereals, even re-releasing two of the franchise that had been hidden in the vaults for many years, Frute Brute and Yummy Mummy. In addition to the bold, modern artwork they also released vintage boxes of all five varieties at Target.

So, how does a company keep up their past successes? Try a new twist. This year, they have acquired the talents of artists from DC Comics to give a fresh look to the three mainstay monsters, Count Chocula, Franken Berry, and Boo Berry. Unfortunately Frute Brute and Yummy Mummy have returned to retirement, but for cereal enthusiasts and box collectors the three redesigned monsters are must buys. And, those looking for retro boxes can return to Target for a new, old version of those (complete with cut-out masks)!

General Mills has a real winner here, and it's good to see them mix it up every year with something different.

Cereal poll update

It's time for our next Breakfast Bowl poll. The last question was: "What do you think of custom cereals?"

Here are the results:

Love the ability to have the cereals I want! - 35%
Passing fad that won't survive - 30%
Store-bought brands are good enough for me - 22%
A good idea that might catch on - 14%

Not much enthusiasm yet for custom cereals, not surprising since most people haven't tried them yet.

Now for the next question. In light of my recent post calling for cereal companies to revive nostalgic brands from the past (even for a limited time), "Which of the following vintage cereals would you like to see and taste again?"

LINK TO POLL (see left column)

Technorati Tags: cereal, polls, breakfastbowl

Review: General Mills Frute Brute and Fruity Yummy Mummy

The biggest cereal story this year has been the major re-launch of General Mills' monster cereal family. Since the announcement this summer I have wanted to do a review of the two recent re-additions: Frute Brute and Yummy Mummy, but it has taken me until this past week to finally get my hands on Frute Brute. For some strange reason, despite checking numerous stores across my state, I couldn't find it.

My hunt is over, and it is time to take a closer taste of what all the marketing hype is about. In many ways this is a somewhat unusual review for me. Instead of doing just one cereal, I am doing two at once. The reason is quite simple. The fruit-flavored monster cereals are essentially the same products, just with different flavors, colors and marketing applied. For General Mills this is a fairly simple way for them to make cereal, and probably profitable considering the boat loads they must be selling leading up to Halloween.

So, let's get out our bowls and pull up a chair. It's time to go down memory lane!

To no one's surprise these are sugared cereals laden with flavor. For those who do not remember these two lesser known monster cereals Frute Brute is cherry flavored, and Yummy Mummy features orange cream. Of course, the key word to go along with these descriptions is the adjective "artificial". In fact, without the insane use of artificial flavors these cereals wouldn't be worth eating. Between the two, Yummy Mummy has much more pronounced flavor. The cherry in Frute Brute is much more subtle. In fact, I'm not sure I could even identify it as cherry without having first known it. Having said all this, one or two bites of these cereals is fun for the palate, but beyond that the taste ends up being too much. I'm not crazy about them.

The monster shaped cereal is lightly crunchy out of the box, and surprisingly retains its shape and remains somewhat chewy even after considerable time in milk. Texture is average.

 

Let's be honest, these cereals would hardly sell if it weren't for the brilliant marketing. Even the fact that General Mills only makes monster cereals available at this time of year adds to the excitement. These cereals are just plain fun to eat, probably more than any other cereal out there right now. The boxes are fantastic, both in the new wild, colorful designs, and the vintage boxes especially targeted to adults wanting to relive their childhood. The experience is absolutely fantastic!

Now another downer: nutrition. Anyone who purchases these cereals for their health value is either completely stupid about nutrition or delusional. Having said that, however, the modern version of monster cereals are not as bad as the originals or compared to a number of other sugared-cereals on the market. There is actually less than 30% of weight as sugar - not as bad as I would have thought. And, of course General Mills alleviates guilt by emphasizing the token whole grains. Still, not a truly wholesome breakfast, but deserving nonetheless of more than a one bowl rating.

What can I say? Overall this cereal ends up quite average, but because of the experience alone they are highly noteworthy, and worth at least one taste this fall. Enjoy!

 

(Review protocol HERE)

Bringing Back the Oldies

A few weeks ago word was out that Post would be re-introducing a notable cereal that was discontinued over a decade ago. Oreo O's cereal was a novel branding coup when it first came out in 1998, and had many fans. Unfortunately, enthusiasm waned, and eventually the famous cookie inspired cereal was pulled from the market. Now that the Oreo brand has gone into hyper-mode with virtually every flavor combination possible in cookies, Post saw this as a great time to bring it back in its cereal form. Cereal and Oreo fans have been ecstatic.

The real story, however, is not just the return of this particular cereal, but about the comeback of nostalgic cereals. This is the not the first time for such a revival. General Mills did it not too long ago with French Toast Crunch, and a short-term resurrection of two almost forgotten monster cereals. Also coming soon, is Post Honey Maid S'mores cereal (a Honey Maid cereal was also first introduced about 10 years ago, before disappearing).

The point in all this is that for cereal companies looking for growth opportunities, bringing back nostalgic cereals could be one effective strategy. Most of us grew up with certain memorable cereals on our kitchen tables, and nothing would generate an emotional response like getting an opportunity to try again one a cereal like Freakies, OK's, Pink Panther Flakes, etc. (Another approach that companies have used is to simply provide vintage packaging on existing cereals to tap into our memories of the past).

Sure, the reality of reintroduced cereals might not live up to our memories of them, but, it would certainly generate some significant short-term sales, and perhaps one or two of these oldies could become a hit again. At minimum, this would generate some interest in cereal again at time when people seem to be pulling away.

What cereal would you like to see return?